The Day From Hell
by Confureku
Summary: A girl from our time goes to the Kenshin world, chaos seems to follow this one around, she's also very strange.
1. The Day From Hell

A/N: This is my first Rurouni Kenshin fic, so please be kind. I plan to make this a lot funnier in later chapters, it won't always be so serious.  
  
Lin kicked a rock as she walked along the abandoned strip of dirt road. The sun boiled the ground beneath her. She looked up, using a hand to shield her eyes, and tried to find the end of the road, sighing when it just kept going on. She grabbed the straps on her pack and adjusted them, trying to find a more comfortable spot for it on her back. Her legs ached from her walk. She had run away from home eleven hours ago, and hadn't stopped walking since then. At the beginning she had run, trying to gain as much distance as she could before someone went searching for her, but had soon tired.  
  
'Why did I do this again?' she thought to herself. 'Oh yeah, I remember, because of my family.' She tore her thoughts away from the subject as she heard a sound. A car.  
  
Lin ran to the side of the road and joked over the barbed wire fence located there, diving into some bushes. It was a good thing that she had much better hearing than most people, otherwise she would have been caught. She peered through the bushes, careful not to be seen. Just as she thought, a cop car.  
  
They had sent somebody looking for her. This sucked. Now she would have to take much more rough terrain, through the bushes where there could be poisonous snakes, coyotes, or some random rabid cow that may appear. She wasn't sure where she was exactly. Her parents had just moved to this god awful state a few months ago, and she still hadn't memorized the terrain.  
  
'New Mexico, what a hell hole,' she thought. She waited until the car passed and was far down the road before she began to crawl across the ground, if she were to stand up now she would be seen, but she had to cover more ground. She left late last night, right after her parents had gone to bed.  
  
Last night had been the last straw. She reached her hand tenderly up to the bruise on her back, wincing as she touched it. She couldn't take it any more. That's why she had left. Things would be different now that she was on her own. At the age of seventeen she was on her own. She sneered at that thought.  
  
What would her friends think now? The ones that had never believed her? What would they think now that she was gone. Oh well, there was no turning back now. It seemed that her parents had finally figured out that she wasn't on a "walk", as she had said in her note. What would they do if they got her back?  
  
She shuddered at the thought and continued on, unwilling to be caught. Lin cried out as her leg landed upon something sharp. She immediately took pressure off the leg and sat down, examining what had happened. Today was not her day. She winced as she pulled the large shard of glass from her knee, tossing the bloody thing aside. She should've waited one more day, just one more day and she would bet that all of this wouldn't be happening.  
  
But she couldn't wait one more day, she had planned this for weeks, last night had been it. She'd made sure that she slept a lot more than she needed to for a few days before she had left, that way she wouldn't have to sleep all night or day, giving her ample time to get far away. She wondered where she would go.  
  
It was a good thing that she had been studying languages since she was small. She could now speak Russian, Chinese, Japanese, Latin, and German. She could go nearly anywhere she wanted to and would be fine. The only thing she would have to worry about would be food. She had packed quite a bit with her, but no so much as to hinder her. She had her cheap sword from Korea, a small dagger, a cloak (so that she could hide in the dark if the need arose), food, some clothes, a couple books, her cd player, batteries, and a lot of water. It was a last minute decision to bring the cheap sword with her. She had merely remembered that there were wild animals out here.  
  
Not that she thought the thing would do her much good against anything really strong, the thing was so cheap that it was barely sharp, and if she hit anything really hard, it might break. She was unable to really slash anything, but she could impale it on the end, and if she hit someone with the dull blade hard enough, it would leave quite the bruise.  
  
She climbed to her feet, guessing that the cop was far enough away by now, and began to trudge through the seven foot tall bushes. She had just barely begun to walk when she heard someone call her name. Her head snapped around, searching for the owner of the voice.  
  
There stood three cops. "Lin! Come with us! Everything will be fine! We can talk this out!" The cops stood there frozen, waiting for her to react, acting as though she was some dangerous animal that might be set off at any moment.  
  
She barely hesitated before turning around and sprinting away.  
  
"STOP!" some of the cops called. Lin could hear them running after her. She wondered how they thought that they even had a chance at catching up with her, their big bellies rolling over their trousers, while she was in track. She turned her head and looked at them, seeing exactly how close they were, and tried not to laugh.  
  
The poor guys looked like they were about to have a heart attack after only twenty feet of running. Lin continued to look at them, letting her feet guide her instead of her eyes, careful not to trip. She looked more closely at their faces as their eyes widened into one of fear. What were they looking at?  
  
"LIN STOP!!!!" one of them called. Lin turned around to look in front of her, wanting to know what had them so scared. She barely had time to take in a sharp breath as her feet continued to guide her straight towards the edge of a cliff. Could she stop in time? She was just about to slow down when something in her mind snapped.  
  
'Go.' It told her. It was like a voice in her mind. A voice similar to her, but different. 'What?!' she answered. 'I'll die!'  
  
She felt something urging her on. 'Go.' The voice said again. The voice was smooth sounding, and calm. Lin suddenly felt the urge to keep going. She had to keep going, she didn't know why, but she just had to. 'Go.' It said again.  
  
That was all she needed. She put more of her energy into her legs and ran faster, getting closer to the edge. As she came to the ledge she used all of her leg power and shot off, flying through the air. A calm seemed to envelop her as she plunged through the air, straight towards the bottom, which was hundreds of feet below her. This was it.  
  
At least she got away from her parents, from her old life. This would be the end of it all. She closed her eyes in acceptance, waiting for the painful end to come, not sure why she had jumped. It was the voice. The voice told her to, and she felt that it was the right thing to do. It just seemed right.  
The cops ran to the edge of the cliff, looking over the ledge, searching for the form of the falling girl. "Why did she jump?" one of them asked no one in particular. It was then that they noticed it. The girl hadn't screamed, she had sprinted towards the edge, now they didn't even see her falling form. She couldn't have hit bottom already. Where was she?  
Lin groaned in pain, afraid to open her eyes. What happened? She tried to reach her arm up to her head, but froze when it hurt too much for her to do so. Was she in a car accident? Everything came back to her in a flash. She jumped off a cliff. Why did she jump off a cliff? 'Go.' She remembered the voice. The beautiful, clear voice that sounded like a different version of her own.  
  
Her eyes shot open when it finally dawned on her that she was alive after a fall like that. She closed her eyes again when dots and flashes of bright colors invaded them. There was no way she could've survived. She opened her eyes again, slowly this time. Forest. There was forest all around her. Not the type of forest that she was used to. It seemed so..........oriental. Where the hell was she?  
  
Gathering her strength, she slowly sat up, wincing in pain. Her entire body hurt. She looked around her, trying to gain her bearings, but failing miserably. Her eyes fell upon her pack. At least she had that. She reached her arm out tenderly, grabbing the strap of her pack and pulling towards her. She needed to find out where she was, and she was never going to find out by just sitting there.  
  
She got to her feet, shaking on unsteady legs. They hurt so very badly. She looked up, half expecting to see the sides of a cliff. Nothing but bamboo and sky. Bamboo, that was what it was called. Lin reached down and dusted the dirt from her pants, reaching up to her hair and pulling leaves out.  
  
She was utterly confused about what was going on. Too many questions flooded her mind, questions that she hadn't any answers to. She took a step forward, nearly crying out in the pain that it caused her. What was wrong with her leg? She looked down at the offending limb, her eyes widening when she saw it. It seemed that the cut from the glass had been ripped further open, creating a six inch long gash down her shin. A lot of blood was dried on her leg. This made her wonder how long she had been out.  
  
The wound didn't seem entirely fresh. It was then that she noticed she wasn't wearing any clothes. She gasped and looked around quickly, wondering if anyone had seen. She reached into her pack and pulled out the first thing she could, which happened to be her long, hooded cloak. She didn't have the energy to fully dress herself at the moment, so she just threw they cloth around her, securing it in the front.  
  
She prayed that she wouldn't run into anything in the woods because she wouldn't have the energy to fight it. She sat back down as another wave of exhaustion swept over her. She reached back into her pack and pulled out a sandwich she had fixed for herself earlier. She ate it with desperation, seemingly becoming hungrier the more she ate.  
  
After she had finished she wiped the crumbs from her mouth, standing once again on legs that seemed rejuvenated. She took a step forward, once again reminded of her injured leg. There was nothing she could do for it now, so she simply ignored the pain and continued on.  
Lin stopped next to a river. She'd been walking for hours once again, and needed to rest her feet. It was a killer having no shoes, they were becoming torn from roots that she'd tripped over, and any other thing that she'd had the misfortune of encountering. She dangled them in the cool water, looking up at the night sky. It was becoming increasingly chilly out. She opened her pack, pulling out some clothes and setting them on the ground next to her. When she saw a black shirt it reminded her of something.  
  
She remembered that there was a way to protect your feet even if you had no shoes. You simply had to tear some cloth into a long strip and wrap it around the arc of your foot. You didn't need to cover your heel or the front of your foot because they were tough enough that they didn't need it. She grabbed the shirt and began ripping it into a long strip, wrapping it around the middle of her foot and up her calf where she tied it securely.  
  
She smiled proudly at her work and turned to her clothes now that she had enough energy to dress. Her eyes met a small raccoons. A raccoon that was messing with her clothes. She smiled at the cute animal. It picked something up and crawled into, reminding Lin of the way a cat plays in a paper sack.  
  
Lin laughed as it got caught in the fabric, trying to find a way out. It finally got out with a final shove. A shove that sent all of her clothes into the quickly flowing stream. Lin's eyes widened as her clothes were swept far away. She stood, cried out, and reached her hand out, as though the action would bring them back.  
  
She sighed and dropped her arm down to her side as they were swept out of sight. This was not her day. She dropped heavily to the ground. At least the cloak covered her. She decided to give up for the night. She looked down at the ground with trepidation, her eyes meeting those of the raccoon's. It looked slightly afraid of her. She smiled at the creature, reaching her hand out to it.  
  
"It's okay. I won't hurt you, despite you losing my clothing." The raccoon took her hand and examined it, turning it every which way. Lin laughed at the creature and laid down on the ground, making a pillow out of leaves and quickly falling asleep. 


	2. The day From Hell Continues aka Run Ins ...

A/N: They're going to be speaking in Japanese, even though you and I can understand. (winks)  
  
Lin jumped as she felt something grab her roughly and haul her up to her feet. Her eyes snapped open and were met with a group of large men. She crinkled her nose when a horrible smell invaded her senses. Jeez, when was the last time these guys bathed? She almost reached up and slapped herself on the forehead at the stupid though. She was worrying about how they smelled instead of why they were sneering at her.  
  
She felt the rough grip on her shoulders loosen and leave her completely. She turned around, seeing a fat man standing directly in front of her.  
  
"Hajimamashite, Jo-chan," the man sneered at her. 'Hajimamashite?' she thought. This is Japanese. What the hell was she doing in Japan?! She was happy that she could understand them. How rude of him to call her little missy!  
  
"What do you want?" she asked him, returning the Japanese.  
  
"You have a strange accent. Where are you from?"  
  
"I believe that is none of your business. I'll just be on my way." She picked up her pack, walking to the edge of the circle of men surrounding her. A large man stepped in her way. She side stepped, trying to get around him, but her blocked her way again. She glared up at his smiling form.  
  
"I said that I will be on my way, so will you kindly move?" she asked, gritting her teeth. These guys were really starting to bug her.  
  
"I don't think that I can do that," the man said, the sneer never leaving his face. She was whipped around by someone grabbing her shoulder. It was the fat man from before. He threw her to the ground, sending her pack flying a few feet away from her. She glared up at the man, not moving from the ground.  
  
She began to stand, but the man only shoved her back down. "I'm afraid that we can't let you go just yet, you see we have to have a bit of fun with you first."  
  
Fear began to creep into the edges of Lin's mind, but she refused to let it show on her face. This man wanted her to be afraid. She used the energy from her fear and plastered a scowl on her face.  
  
"You will let me leave now." She stated firmly. The man just laughed at her. She stood quickly, reaching for her pack. Before she could grab it a hand shot out and hit her. The man hit her hard enough to send her flying to the ground with a thud.  
  
"Stay down," the man commanded. Lin fixed her face into a determined gaze and stood slowly. An angry looked passed across his face before he smiled again. He raised his arm up and back handed her again, sending her flying into a tree. She hit it with a crack, her eyes widening in pain.  
  
The man walked up to her again, placing a hard hit directly in her stomach. She doubled over in pain, clutching at her stomach.  
  
"You aren't dressed like a woman. You must be a whore. She man grabbed the front of her cloak and ripped it open, continuing to glower at her.  
  
Lin screamed. "NO!" With speed born of desperation she thrust her leg up, kicking him hard in the crotch. The man doubled over, his face turning a slight purple color. Lin ran to her pack and picked it up, pushing herself through the wall of men, and running. She ran as fast as she could, the footsteps behind her spurring her on. She didn't know where she was, or where she was going. For all she knew she was running straight into a trap, or deeper into the woods.  
  
She ran blindly, not caring where she was going. The footsteps were catching up with her. These guys weren't like the fat cops who couldn't keep up with anybody. Fear gave her another shot of adrenaline and she pushed off the ground with a new burst of speed.  
  
She looked ahead of her and saw something glitter in the early morning sun. Somebody was there. She ran faster towards the person, praying that they would be able to help her. She held her cloak shut in front of her. She finally reached the person, or, as it would be, persons.  
  
She stopped when she reached them.  
  
"Please help me! Please!" The people looked startled. There were two men, a woman, and a boy, sitting there having lunch. The woman was the first to speak.  
  
"What's wrong?" she asked. Lin was about to explain when she heard the men running out of the bushes behind her. Lin watched helplessly as one of them threw a knife at her throat. She barely detected a flash out of the corner of her eye. She stared in awe as the knife was easily hit away from her by a red haired man.  
  
The large, smelly men glared at the shorter red haired man. "She belongs to us. Hand her over."  
  
Lin watched as a tall man with spiky hair stood and walked over to the men. "She's yours? Why do you want her?"  
  
"She owes us money." Lin's eyes widened as everyone turned to her.  
  
"I do not! I was just sleeping in the woods and they woke me up! They attacked me and were going to-" she stopped as she panted in a panic. "I.........I.........I don't even know where I am! I don't know these people! I don't even know this place!" Lin was now on the edge of hysterics as everything that had happened caught up with her.  
  
The woman stood and walked over to her, placing a hand on her shoulder. "It's okay. Kenshin won't let anything happen to you."  
  
Lin looked at her, question in her eyes. "Kenshin?"  
  
The woman nodded and pointed to the red haired man who was staring at the men. "You, leave." The taller, spiky haired man said simply. The larger of the men that were chasing her threw a punch at the guy.  
  
The man dodged it easily and landed a punch on the guy's face that had him knocked out in one blow. The other man looked down at the form of his unconscious friend and ran off. Lin turned and looked at the woman there.  
  
"My name is Kaoru. This is Kenshin, Sanosuke, and Yahiko." Lin looked at all of them as they were introduced. "What is your name?"  
  
Lin looked at them cautiously. They did save her, but she still didn't know them. "Lin," She stated simply. Lin watched as Kaoru began to say something to her. She didn't know what she was saying at the moment because she was too dizzy. Why was she so dizzy all of the sudden?  
  
She noticed a throbbing in her leg. She looked down at it and noticed that the wound had been reopened and blood was pouring down her leg. She tried to focus on what Kaoru was saying. Why did that name sound familiar? Kaoru. Her mind was too hazy to focus. Kaoru, Kenshin........She knew that she'd heard it before. But where?  
  
She began to sway on her feet as the fog on her mind got thicker. She was barely aware of falling and someone catching her before everything went black.  
Kaoru looked at the girl who was laying on a bed, asleep. Her name was Lin. They had rescued her and then she passed out. Sanosuke had to carry her back to the dojo, then left to get Megumi. Yahiko and Kenshin were outside of the room at the moment, waiting for Megumi to return. They had stopped the bleeding on her leg, but she still needed medical attention. Kaoru finished redressing the girl only moments before, now she watched the girl as her expressions changed in her sleep.  
  
"No," the girl mumbled. "Stop." Kaoru stared at her, wondering what she was dreaming about. Slowly her mumbling was becoming louder.  
  
"No! I said stop! I can't do it anymore!" her voice was now at a regular speaking level. Kaoru wondered if she should wake Lin up. It would be better for her to rest. Kaoru jumped back as Lin shot up in bed, her eyes still closed.  
  
"I SAID STOP!" she cried, now standing but still asleep. Kaoru turned as the door opened and Yahiko ran in, followed closely by Kenshin. They stared as Lin stood, her eyes open, but now alive. The girl was sleep walking. Lin seemed to be searching around the room for something.  
  
"Not again," she mumbled.  
  
"Kaoru? What did you do to her?" Yahiko asked.  
  
"I didn't do anything you brat!" she screamed. "She's been talking in her sleep, then she just stood up."  
  
Kaoru watched the girl fumble around the room, walking over to a table and leaning over it. She didn't move. Kaoru walked towards the girl, guessing that she had gone back to sleep fully.  
  
She approached her and placed her hand on the girl's shoulder. She jumped back as Lin spun around, a knife in her hand and slashed at her.  
  
"I SAID NEVER AGAIN!" she cried. Lin slashed at her again. She leaned back just far enough to get out of the way of the blade. Lin slashed over and over, each time getting closer to Kaoru. Kaoru's eyes widened as she began to fall backwards, tripping over Lin's pillow. She looked up as Lin raised the knife up, ready to stab her. As the blade cam down there was a flash. Kenshin jumped in the way and knocked the knife aside with his sword. Lin walked over to her pack calmly. Everybody watched her closely as she grabbed onto the side.  
  
Lin blocked their view with her body and pulled out a sword, turning around quickly and slashing at Kenshin. Kenshin dodged the blow easily, landing behind her. Lin turned sharply and attacked again, slashing quickly at the man. Kenshin dodged each blow easily. He had not drawn his sword.  
  
.................................................  
  
Lin looked at the man before her. Why did he treat her this way? How could he do this? He always did. She couldn't take it any more, couldn't deal with the way he treated her. She would end it. She picked up a knife and slashed at him. He just stood and laughed at her.  
  
"Is that all that you can do Lin?" he asked venomously. "After all that training this is all that you can do?" He hit the knife out of her hand easily. He laughed at her. She couldn't take it anymore. She wouldn't take it anymore. He was always laughing, always mocking, always hitting.  
  
Lin walked calmly and picked up her sword, turning on the man and slashing at him. He merely laughed, dodging each blow. He picked up his sword from behind him and blocked each blow easily, still laughing. She was better than this and she knew it. Lin slashed at him still. "NEVER!" she yelled at him. "NEVER AGAIN! I SAID STOP!" She slashed at the man with all the hate that she'd built up over the years.  
  
...................................................  
  
Kenshin stared at the girl as she screamed, tears streaming down her cheeks. "NEVER! NEVER AGAIN! I SAID STOP!" She slashed at him with more intensity. He drew his sword and dodged an attack, hitting her on her back. She fell to the ground, her sword dropping from her hands and sliding across the floor. Her eyes cleared from the haze of her dream as she awoke.  
  
Lin looked up at Kenshin. He was putting his sword away. She looked at the faces of Yahiko and Kaoru. What had she done? She looked at the sword which lay a few feet away from her. Her eyes widened as she remembered the dream. Oh God what had she done?  
  
She looked back up at Kenshin, her eyes full of tears. She had attacked them. "I'm sorry," she whispered.  
  
"I'm so sorry!" she called out loudly, collapsing to the ground in new tears. That dream. She'd had that dream again. Kenshin walked over to her and placed his hand on her back. "It's okay," he said softly.  
  
Lin looked up at his face. He was smiling at her. "Go back to sleep," he said calmly. Lin nodded and crawled over to her bed. Falling back down to the covers into immediate sleep. 


	3. Let Me Go

Lin awoke, slightly confused. Where the hell was she? She looked around at her surroundings. She was alone in a room that looked to be of Japanese design. Slowly, she sat up, wincing as her injured leg protested, then everything came back to her in a rush. She had attacked the very people who had saved her and were taking care of her. She shut her eyes tightly, remembering the dream. Usually she was able to shut everything like that out, but usually the past didn't come back to her that strongly. It was then that another load of rocks seemed to land on her.  
  
She had cried in front of them. She'd cried in front of them all and made a fool of herself. She was such an idiot. Too embarrassed to face them, she stayed in the room, not moving from her sitting position. 'I'll never do that again.' She said to herself.  
  
'I will never show such weakness again.' She promised herself this, new resolve filling her. She stood slowly, testing out her leg. There was still pain , but she was able to walk easily enough.  
  
She had to leave this place, she knew that much, but how was she supposed to get out of here without them noticing. Not knowing how many people lived in this place would present a problem, she wouldn't even know how careful she would have to be. Finally making her decision, she got dressed in what was left for her. 'Oh great,' she thought, 'a kimono...' She put it on carefully, remembering that if it was closed the wrong way, or if the bow was in front, it would mean that she was either dead, or a whore. She picked up her pack and stuffed everything together, including her knife and sword.  
  
She would have to run away from these people and find someplace to stay. So she was in Japan? She had no idea how to get back to America. With all of her things ready, she slowly opened a door, prepared to walk outside. Lin looked down, grabbing the shoes next to the door and placing them on her feet.  
  
This was so weird. Cautiously, she stepped outside walking in the dirt until she came to a corner. Everything seemed so quiet, maybe everybody was away. Her eyes bugged out of her head when she rounded the corner. Everyone was sitting there. Kenshin was washing clothes while two little girls played with a ball. Kaoru was there talking with some other woman that Lin didn't know, and that kid and tall man were also there, just sitting around.  
  
They all turned to look at her and she froze in her place, one foot still off the ground. "It's seems that the patient is awake," the taller woman said. Lin stared at her, not sure what to do, no sound escaping her lips. Everyone stared at her, as though they expected her to do something.  
  
She placed her foot on the ground, slowly backing away from them.  
  
"Lin, this is Megumi," Kaoru said. Lin took another step back. "Lin? Where are you going?"  
  
"Um, heh heh. Nowhere important!"  
  
"What a strange accent....." Megumi said. Lin sweatdropped. Why did everyone keep saying that? She thought that her accent was just fine! She turned on her heel and ran, twisting her head around and waving.  
  
"Goodbye everyone! Thank you for all your help!" She turned back around, running out of the open doors of the fence like apparatus. She was about twenty feet out the door when she heard someone running after her. It would appear, that there were two people. She turned around and looked. There was Sanosuke and Kenshin. 'Oh shit,' she thought.  
  
This was gonna suck. She ran faster, trying desperately to avoid knocking people over.  
  
Twenty Minutes later  
  
"My!........................You.........guys...........have..........such... ......endurance.........." Lin panted, turning her head just enough to look at them. They didn't even seem tired yet. A while back that had left the town, now they were running near woods and grass. The two men sped up. Lin let out a small shriek and ran faster, her legs burning from the effort.  
  
"JEEZ! WHAT DO YOU GUYS WANT WITH ME??!!" she screamed at them.  
  
"STOP AND WE'LL TELL YOU!" Sanosuke yelled back. Lin decided that, at this particular moment, it would be in her best interest to stop. Without slowing down, she suddenly came to a halt. Kenshin ran right into her, while Sanosuke ran off to the side.  
  
Lin and Kenshin toppled to the ground.  
  
"Orooooorooooorooooo," Kenshin said, his eyes twirling. Lin sweatdropped. She looked up at the man who was laying precariously on top of her, completely out of it. Her eyes got big as he once again focused on her. He stared at her, seemingly unaware of what position they were in.  
  
"AAAHHH!" Lin screamed. "Hentai!!! She smacked him and jumped out from under him. Kenshin fell back again, not moving. Lin stood and dusted herself off, looking at Sanosuke expectantly.  
  
"What is it that you wanted with me?" she asked.  
  
"I'll ask the questions here. First of all, why are you running?"  
  
It seemed that Kenshin had recovered and was now standing as well, looking at Lin.  
  
"I don't think that's any of your business!" Lin yelled at him, crossing her arms across her chest.  
  
"You forgot this," Kenshin said, holding out her cloak. Lin sweatdropped again. She reached her hand out slowly, taking the heap of cloth from him. She raised her hand up to the back of her head and scratched it sheepishly.  
  
"Heh heh, thanks." Lin looked at their surroundings, this looked kind of like the place that she woke up at. There was a bamboo forest nearby. She strained her eyes, looking into the forest. Was that what she thought it was?! She dropped her cloak, her interest now somewhere else entirely. Using all of her strength she sprinted into the woods, heading for what she believed was a cliff.  
  
Kenshin and Sanosuke ran after her. "This girl is crazy!" Sanosuke cried. Kenshin's eyes narrowed. The girl was running towards a cliff. Kenshin sprinted ahead of Sanosuke, trying to catch up with the girl.  
  
He was gaining on her quickly, but she had a head start on him, a large one. She would reach the cliff before he could get there.  
  
Lin threw her legs in front of her, her feet pounding loudly against the ground. She was almost to the cliff, just another thirty feet. She would hurl herself from the cliff, and wake up back in America, she was sure of it. There was only one problem. She wasn't sure if she had the guts. The voice from before, the one telling her to go, wasn't there.  
  
She continued to push forward, sure that it would appear soon. As she neared the edge she leapt from it, determined to end up back in America.  
  
"Kenshin!" Lin turned her neck, trying to find out why Sanosuke was calling Kenshin's name. Her eyes widened when she saw him falling after her, a determined look on his face. He had positioned his body so that he was falling faster than her. Her reached his hand out and grabbed her, pulling her body to his. Lin wondered what his plan was.  
  
He turned, using his strength to allow his foot to catch a ledge and send them flying back up to the edge of it, where they landed safely on the ground in front of Sanosuke.  
  
"What are you doing you idiot girl!" Sanosuke cried.  
  
Kenshin spoke, surprising Lin. "No matter how bad things are, there is always a reason to live. You shouldn't try to kill yourself just because you've had it rough."  
  
Lin's eyes widened, then narrowed at the man. "I wasn't trying to kill myself!" she screamed at the two men. They seemed a little lost at the statement, not sure what she meant by it.  
  
"That's how I got here! I jumped from a cliff and I just woke up in Japan! I was just trying to get back to my home country!"  
  
The two men sweatdropped. Sanosuke leaned over to Kenshin, whispering in his ear. "This girl really IS crazy." Lin threw her pack at him.  
  
"I heard that!" Sanosuke caught it, slinging it over his shoulder.  
  
"Hey! Give that back!" Lin cried, jumping up and down, trying to get the pack from the man's hands which were now held high above his head.  
  
"You promise not to jump again?"  
  
Lin glowered at him, not saying a word. They stood like that for a few moments, no one saying a word, the wind blowing through the trees. Finally she spoke.  
  
"No."  
  
With that she threw herself from the cliff again, growling in frustration when Kenshin caught her hand over the side. "Let me go!" she cried.  
  
"I won't let you kill yourself!"  
  
"I already told you that I'm not trying to kill myself. She jerked and writhed without warning, causing Kenshin to lose his balance and fall over the edge with her. Sanosuke grabbed his hand quickly, keeping the two from falling. Thei combined weight was heavy for the man, but he was able to hold them.  
  
"Just let me go! I don't know what will happen to you guys if you fall too!"  
  
"The same thing that will happen to you!" Sanosuke yelled. "We'll die."  
  
"Then just let me GO!!!!" Lin writhed again. 'Go.' There was the voice. Her eyes widened, her heart beginning to beat faster. 'Go.' It said again. She had to go now.  
  
"LET ME GO NOW!!!!!!!!!" she screamed at the top of her lungs, twisting her body around and writhing for all she was worth. Sanosuke's face twisted in pain at having to hold her.  
  
"I don't want to have to hurt you guys, just let me go!" Sanosuke still didn't let go. Lin threw her leg up and kicked Kenshin in the side. One of his eyes shut in pain, but he kept his grip. Lin kicked him again, tears beginning to form in her eyes. She didn't want to hurt him! He just wouldn't let go. He had been kind to her, even risked his life for hers, but he had to let her go. She had to fall right now.  
  
'GO!' the voice cried louder in her head. The voice finally gave her the strength. With a new shot of adrenaline, she twisted her body, effectively causing her to fall. But something happened that she didn't intend. The two men were now plummeting with her. Lin knew that Kenshin would not be able to save bother her and Sanosuke, so she hoped that he would save his friend and she could just fall, but he only watched her, not making any move to save himself.  
  
Lin watched as they were all surrounded by a bright light, and then all was black. 


End file.
